Identifier: indiapastpresent01forb (find matches)
Title: India, past and present / C. H. Forbes-Lindsay
Year: 1903 (1900s)
Authors: Forbes-Lindsay, Charles Harcourt Ainslie, 1860-
Subjects: India -- Description and travel
Publisher: Philadelphia : John C. Winston
Contributing Library: University of California Libraries
Digitizing Sponsor: MSN

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the twelve islands that composethe group of which Bombay is the principal, lies sixmiles to the east of the latter. To the natives it isknown as Garapur, or the town of excavations, theappellation having reference to the famous cavetemples. By the English it w^as named Elephantd,on account of a large image of an elephant, hewn fromrock, which stood upon the hill at the southern endof the island until it was removed about forty yearsago to Bombay. The island is covered with thickvegetation, and is practically uninhabited. A stonepier and a flight of steps lead to the entrance ofthe cave, which is marked by two massive columnssupporting a projecting table of rock. The maintemple is about one hundred and thirty feet square,and its roof is supported by twenty pillars andsixteen pilasters, about sixteen feet in height. Twominor excavations stand back, and on each side, ofthe temple. The entire rock is covered with bas-reliefs referring to the Hindu mythology, but chiefly Caves of Elephanta
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ELEPHANTA. 137 to Siva. The most striking of these is the Trimurti, acolossal three-headed figure representing the god inhis triple capacity of Creator, Destroyer and Sus-tained Another strilviug carving is the Ard-dhaua-risliwar, which depicts the deity in the dual aspectof man and woman, one half of the figure displayingthe male and the otlier the female form. The incon-gruity of the combination is lost sight of in themajestic proportions of the figure and the beauty of tlieexecution. Other sculptures portray the marriage ofSiva and Parvati; the birth of Ganesli; the elephant-headed god of Wisdom; the decapitation of Dakshby Siva; Eavana attempting to remove Kailas; themountain abode of Siva; Siva in the guise of a yogi;and Siva engaged in a frantic dance, attended by aretinue of demons. The age of this temple is uncer-tain, but it is probably not less than one thousandyears old. A process of disintegration has been goingon rapidly during the past half century. There are in tlie Bom

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